Over the past couple weeks, I've felt the sudden need and urge to watch old Poirot episodes. A few years back I recieved one of the greatest gifts, the entire Poirot (David Suchet, naturally) collection. This was quite a while before his final episodes so sadly those are not included. BUT I have the all the rest and one day I am going to sit down and watch them from the start. I mostly rewatch the episodes in the second volume as these have two of my favourites ('Death on the Nile' and 'Mystery on the Blue Train'). I started to make my way through all the favourites and even though I know who the murderer is, there is some sort of pleasure from watching these afternoon dramas that can be quite brutal and macabre. There's something about the murder mystery genre that has been seen as more of an older person's TV BUT I disagree. A murder mystery has to have the right suspects, the unexpected amount of actual murders, be suspensful and very entertaining. If its a period piece as well, all the better. If a murder mystery is set in modern day and isn't given the Sunday afternoon cosy crime stamp, its called crime drama. *Eye roll* Its a murder mystery no matter the year its set.
I'd like to bring a few shows to your attention. In the last few weeks I've not only managed to get through and then collapse through Stranger Things 3, Dear White People season 3, GLOW season 3 AND Mindhunter season 2 (I've watched quite a lot of TV) but I have also consumed three very different detective/murder mystery TV shows from Spain, Germany and Finland.
High Seas
Sisters Eva and Carolina board the luxury cruise ship sailing from Spain to Brazil, where Carolina will marry owner of the ship, Fernando. Having recently lost their father, the sisters are thrown into a mystery involving his death when they agree to help a mysterious woman stowaway on the ship. But when the woman goes missing on the voyage's first night, Eva and crewmember Nicolás witness a woman scream and fall from the ship, the plot literally thickens as various plot points are pulled together to solve the mystery.
I'd been wanting a period murder mystery thriller with multiple characters, some with secrets, others with clues and all very dramatic. Of course with a cast of characters this vast there were storylines bound to get lost BUT every piece of the grand puzzle was either solved or resolved, except for a couple of minor things that I believe will come up in the show's second season.
Perfume
Hailing from Germany, this mostly about the murder and less on the mystery series was inspired by both the novel 'Perfume: The Story of a Murderer' and the 2006 film of the same name. Taking place in modern day the show cuts between the investigation and the past when where the main characters knew each other from their school days. All the characters in the show are terrible people in one form or other, except for one but even he has flaws and lacks good judgment. The lead detective is no better, having an affair with her married superior, whinning at him to be with her even though its clear he won't leave his family. You start you loose sympathy and begin to really dislike and much later distrust her actions. With equal parts frustrating and entertaining, with the characters as terrible adults and as teens who practically create a cult based on the novel 'Perfume'. Its a twisted and you will hate everyone BUT its a show that needs no follow up, plus the hunt for the main killer is fascinating.
Dead Wind
Firstly, the title is off putting but look past it, the original Finnish title is better as its just the detective's name and become immersed in the world of air turbines, past trama and of course, murder. Slightly complicated to explain but here goes. After the body of social affairs consultant Anna Bergdahlis found on the site where a massive construction is going to happen, an investigation into the woman's life, family, her affair and her job is turned over, leaving no stone unturned, even going into her past which it seems she tried to forget. Detective Sofia Karppi is a classic flawed detective, she drinks but not to excess, her flaw is that she doesn't take great care of her son and step daughter having moved them back from Germany after the death of her husband. She's still not quite over the shock but is determined to close this case. Teamed up with rookie detective Sakari Nurmi from the financial crimes unit, he is very different from her. Clashing at first but soon have each others' backs. So far so typical BUT there is something so refreshing that had me hooked to this show. The suspects and other characters that dip in and out of the story are also compelling to watch as well as annoying as hell Karppi (don't worry she's amazing really). Luckily, the show is getting a second series which means more Karppi but no idea about Nurmi. Fingers crossed the dynamic duo will be reunited.